viii, 349 p. : 25 cm

"Sex, Preference, and Family brings together seventeen eminent philosophers and legal scholars who offer commentary on sexuality (including sexual behavior, sexual orientation, and the role of pornography in shaping sexuality), on the family (including both same-sex and single-parent families), and on the proper role of law in these areas. The essayists, which include Susan Moller Okin, Catherine A. MacKinnon, Cass Sunstein, Martha Minow, William Galston, and Sara are all fiercely independent thinkers and offer the reader a range of bold and stimulating proposals. Editors David Estlund and Martha Nussbaum have written special pieces which bring into focus each section of the book. And because each essayist is aware of and often responding to the other contributors, the book as a whole assumes the character of a round-table discussion--lively, sometimes contentious, but always crisp and illuminating. Of vital importance to anyone interested in sexuality, homosexuality, gender, feminism, and the family, Sex, Preference, and the Family both clarifies a number of heated national debates and points the way toward a less divisive future." - Provided by publisher

Includes bibliographical references and index

Part I. Shaping sex, preference and family -- The social construction and reconstruction of care/ Michele M. Moody-Adams -- Constructing love, desire, and care/ Martha C. Nussbaum -- Sexual orientation and gender: Dichotomizing differences/ Susan Moller Okin -- Part II. Sex -- Democratic sex: Reynolds vs U.S., sexual relations and community/ Nancy L. Rosenblum -- Sexuality and liberty: Making room for nature and tradition/ Stephen Macedo -- Pornography left and right/ Catharine A. MacKinnon -- The visit and the video: Publication and the line between sex and speech/ David M. Estlund -- Shaping and sex: Commentary on parts I and II/ David M. Estlund -- Part III. Preference -- The economic approach to homosexuality/ Richard A. Posner -- The sexual economist and legal regulation of the sexual orientations/ Janet E. Halley -- Homosexuality and the constitution/ Cass R. Sunstein -- Natural law, morality, and sexual complementarity/ Paul J. Weithman -- Part IV. Family -- All in the family and in all families: Membership, loving, and owing/ Martha Minow -- Beyond gay and lesbian "families we choose"/ William N. Erskine, Jr. -- Causes of declining well-being among U. S. children/ William A. Galston -- The consequences of single motherhood/ Sara McLanahan -- Preferences and families: Commentary on part III and IV/ Martha C. Nussbaum

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